When She Falls
by EmmieSage
Summary: After her encounter with Torchwick, Ruby knows that something is wrong. After collapsing in a fight, Weiss is there to help her and the two partners grow closer. But will they be able to cope when things turn out to be more serious then they first thought?
1. A Little Bit of Pollen

**Authors Note:** The start of this fanfic is set during the events of No Brakes in Volume 2.

Ruby felt a a new surge of energy as she spotted her team running towards her. She had never been more happy to see them. In front of her, she felt Torchwick grow angry with agitation. Taking her opportunity to escape him, she leapt up from lying down on the ground, onto Torchwick's shoulders, using his moment of distraction to her advantage. He quickly shoved her off and she wasted no time, running as fast as she could towards her fellow team members, Zwei and Dr Oobleck, not believing her luck and their good timing. A furious Torchwick yelled "Somebody kill her!" Ruby fought her urge to look back and kept running forward to safety. Guns from behind her boomed as she managed to doge every one of them. That was until she felt something hit her back and disperse over her body. But there was no pain. Fearing the worst, Ruby looked over her shoulder to get a huge cloud of red dust in her face. It must have come from the end of Torchwick's cane, she determined from the sadistic grin he had on his face as if he had just won. She screamed, fearing that she was going to explode. After nothing happened, she sneezed. This motion cause her to involuntarily inhale a small amount of the dust. No, not dust. Pollen maybe? The main thing that matter to Ruby was that it wasn't anything serious, so she kept running out of the red pollen cloud until she ran into four masked members of the White Fang. Without her beautiful Crescent Rose, Ruby wasn't able to defend herself and she hated that feeling of helplessness. Before she had any time to come up with a plan, the four members exploded, revealing Yang standing behind them. She called out Ruby's name and Ruby was quick to jump into her big sisters arms. The rest of the team and Dr Oobleck didn't take long to join the two of them. Ruby removed herself from her system. She coughed again. Some of that pollen must still have been in her system. It didn't matter now. They had a train to stop.

* * *

"Ruby. You've got to get up." Ruby stirred in her sleep as she felt a hand grab her arm and start to shake her. "You've got to get up or we're going to be late for class." Ruby recognised Weiss's voice in it's annoyed, slightly harsh tone. As she comprehended the words Weiss had said to her, Ruby's eyes flicked open and her body jolted to a start, nearly causing her to fall out of her precariously strung up bunk bed and made scream just a little. Weiss was standing on the floor next to the bed, fully dressed and with an impatient expression. Ruby couldn't see Blake or Yang in the room so she guessed that they had already left. Realising how late it must be Ruby turned her attention to her partner.

"Weiss, why didn't you wake me up sooner?" She asked.

"You should have set an alarm. I'm not your mother." Weiss started in her normal telling off tone, but as she continued her voice softened with concern, "besides, it didn't sound like you slept well last night. I thought you could use the extra sleep." Ruby rubbed her eyes and looked up at the ceiling. There was a dull throbbing in the back of her head and her muscles slightly ached. She attributed it to the events of yesterday. Weiss walked over to her desk and was beginning to pick up some of her books. Sighing, Ruby rolled over and jumped from her top bunk. The thumping in her head was still there. She closed her eyes for a moment until it went away. Satisfied, she continued getting ready as quickly as possible. Weiss patiently waited for her at the door. That day breakfast was one piece of toast on the go while they ran to their first class.

Professor Port was going on one of his rants and thankfully didn't notice the late girls as they silently slipped inside the classroom. As Ruby sat down in her seat, Yang, who was sitting next to her, gave her a sharp nudge.

"What took you so long sis. Me and Blake were starting to think that you weren't coming." She said, more jokingly than seriously.

"I may have slept it. Just a little." Ruby explained, feeling her cheeks go a little red with embarrassment. As And gave her an exasperated look, Ruby felt the need to defend herself. "It was only because Weiss waited till the last minute to wake me up!" This was her attempt at shifting the blame and focus off herself.

"Hey!" Weiss retorted, "That was only because you needed the extra rest. You barely slept at all last night. Sorry if I was trying to be considerate!" Yang now looked concerned as she looked down at her little sister.

"You couldn't sleep?" Ruby shook her head. Yang put a comforting hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Is everything okay Ruby? You do look very frazzled this morning."

"I'm fine Yang. Just had a restless sleep last night, that's all" she responded as she playfully shoved

"Okay, okay" Yang laughed and drew her hand back. "You can't Balme me for checking in with my little sister every now and then." Ruby responded by sticking her tongue out at Yang, who went back to writing down notes on whatever Professor Port was saying. Ruby also noticed that Blake who was sitting on the other side of Yang, had been also listening in on their conversation. Ruby gave her a smile to show that she was okay and Blake seemed to be satisfied with it. But as Ruby tried to focus on the lecture and write noted, she had to do her best to ignore the soft thumping still there in the back of her head. Weiss looked on at her partner. Despite what she had said, Weiss wasn't convinced. Ruby seemed too distracted. So as the bell rang to signal lunch, Weiss pulled her aside.

"Hey Ruby. I was wondering if after classes today, you might want to go into town and see a movie or something." She started. She couldn't understand why her heart was beating so fast. Ruby was a friend so there was no reason to why she should feel so nervous right? Ruby gave her a quizzical look. "You seem really distracted and after everything that's been happening lately, I think that both of us could use a little relaxation time." Ruby considered this for a moment. I was a little strange for Weiss to relax for a whole afternoon. Generally she was studying. But Ruby decided she was right. They both deserved a break and maybe an afternoon out with Weiss would prove to be a good distraction. Plus, Ruby couldn't say no it bonding time with her partner. Though Weiss was improving, she could still be a little icy and distance at times.

"That sounds like a good idea Weiss." Ruby nodded in a agreement. Weiss suddenly felt a lot more relaxed. "But only on one condition. I get to choose the movie!" Ruby added. Weiss laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. But no children's movies." Normally she wouldn't have been so easily persuaded, but she could sense that Ruby needed this. Ruby let out a high pitched 'Yay' and this instantly gave Weiss a warm feeling inside that made it all worth it. She just wanted to see Ruby happy.

"Come on. We should get to lunch"

"Yes, I didn't realise how hungry I was" Ruby agreed. Having a very small breakfast was now starting to catch up to her. The two friends ran to catch up with Blake and Yang who were already a considerable way ahead of them.

* * *

"Okay, I have to admit that was pretty good. Maybe you do have good movie taste." Weiss admitted to Ruby as they left the cinema. Ruby had decided on an action movie. Weiss normally wouldn't see an action movie, too many special effects and they already had enough action in their lives. She was more of a romcom person. But the movie hadn't been half bad.

"I know right! That fight scene at the end was amazing when they had to try to take down that giant robot. I didn't know how they were going to do it." Ruby was defiantly feeling more energetic now, there was a small skip in her step. She stopped to put her now empty bag of popcorn into the bin. Weiss just rolled her eyes. It was very much like Ruby to act like this. As they left the cinema, they both noticed that the sky was already pitch black. As Ruby walked back to Weiss, she noticed that her right hand was noticeably shaking. She held it with her left hand to stop the tremors and took a few deep breaths. It was just because she was hyped up from the movie, she told herself.

"Everything okay?" Weiss called over to Ruby. She had seen Ruby stop dead in her tracks. Ruby was taken a little aback. Her attention had been solely on her hand and she had almost completely forgotten that Weiss was there. She plastered a smile on her face.

"Yeah, coming." She ran to catch up to Weiss.

"Gee, I didn't know it was this late. I guess we would have missed dinner at school." Weiss observed. She opened her scroll to see that the time was 9 pm already. She looked over at Ruby whose stomach let out a loud rumble. She looked at Weiss and blushed. Weiss sighed and gave Ruby a smile."Why don't we go get something to eat before we head back." Ruby gave her a wide smile. Weiss laughed. "Come on, we don't want to be out too late." She took Ruby by the hand and pulled her into the street so that they could find something to eat.


	2. Beaten Down

**Author's Note:** I was craving noodles. Wonder if you can tell.

The bell gave out a soft little tinkle as Weiss pushed the wooden door of the little noodle shop open. Instantly the smell of hot noodles filled the air, but Ruby's appetite was suddenly gone. The smell even made her feel nauseous. But her stomach still grumbled so she put it down to just being too hungry. Weiss noticed her leader's odd behaviour. Usually Ruby would be so excited at the prospect of food, especially noodles.

"Everything okay? You've been awfully quite?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just a little tired." Ruby replied sheepishly, even though she had slept in that morning, she was exhausted. "Let's go order some noodles."

Sitting down at the table, Ruby put her hand up to her temple and rubbed her forehead. The pounding in her head had returned and it was more persistent then ever. She rubbed her forehead for only a moment, not wanting to worry Weiss.

"So, what did you think of the film?" Ruby attempted to make normal conversation.

"I don't think it would have been something that I would have usually chosen, but I'm glad I watched it. It was better than expected."

"Yeah!" Ruby exclaimed triumphantly. With her mind distracted, she was feeling a little better. "We have to do this again sometime."

"Hm, okay." Weiss smirked, open to the idea, "but next time I get to choose the movie." Ruby pulled a disgusted face.

"No, you'll choose a romantic one with no action!" At her reaction Weiss laughed.

"You never know Ruby, you might like it"

"I doubt it." Weiss shook her head. Ruby could be so stubborn sometimes. That was kinda one of the reasons why she liked her though. It took guts to be so strong willed.

"This is really nice, Ruby. We should do it again sometime. You know, if you want to." The mood shifted as Weiss spoke. The normally confident huntress now appeared shy and scared. Ruby noticed this shift too and was slightly taken aback. If Weiss meant what she thought she did.

"I'd like that. It's a good way to relax after everything that's been happening."

Weiss visually relaxed at her words and seemed more at ease.

"Well that was the goal. And it looks like it worked. You look so much happier than earlier today."

"Yeah, I just needed a good distraction." Ruby could see Weiss looking at her expectedly. She could tell that Weiss wanted to know what was wrong with her today, but she wasn't going to ask. "I was just feeling a little off today. I must be coming down with a cold." She explained with a shrug, no wanting Weiss to make a big deal about it. Unfortunately, that was exactly what Weiss was going to do.

"What! Why didn't you tell me earlier? You should be resting in bed, not out and about. This could make it worse."

"Weiiisss. I'm fine. This is why I didn't tell you sooner. If anything, tonight has made me feel better."

"Fine. But you have to promise me you'll go see the nurse. We can't have our leader falling sick."

"Okay, okay." Ruby surrendered. She saw the server walking towards them with two steaming bowls of noodles. "Can we just relax and eat some noodles first?"

"Whatever you want, leader."

The bowls were put down in front of the two girls. The thin yellow noodles were sitting in a golden broth and topped with some kind of finely sliced herbs. The scent was almost heavenly. Weiss immediately picked up her chopsticks and lifted a rather large portion of noodles out of the golden broth. She was convinced that nothing would get between her and her noodles, that was until her gaze moved from the chopsticks in her hand and to the girl on the other side of the table. Ruby hadn't even touched her noodles, which was very out of character. While the noodles had smelt deliciously tempting, for Ruby it had just set off another wave of nausea which set of her head ache again. It was much worse than before and she couldn't help but clutch her forehead.  
"Ruby!" Weiss dropped her chopsticks back into the bowl immediately and in only a second was out of her seat and at Ruby's side. Ruby internally groaned. This wasn't what she had wanted to happen, but she was getting worse and realised that she couldn't keep it from Weiss forever. She felt cold and all her joints had a dull ache. She looked into Weiss's concerned face.

"I-I'm okay. Just not feeling too great. Do you mind if we go home?"

"Of course. You need to rest." Weiss was disappointed that the night had ended like this, definitely not how she had been hoping, but Ruby's wellbeing was much more important. She moved away from Ruby to give her some space, but was still holding her hand. "Do you think you'll be able to walk?"

"Y-yeah, I think so." Ruby gritted her teeth as she slowly stood up from the table, using Weiss's hand to keep her balance. As soon as she had her weight on them, her knees buckled and she was lucky that Weiss was able to catch her.

"Ruby!" Weiss gave out a startled shout of surprise. She held her partner steady as she got used to standing.

"Okay, I'm good." As Ruby took a step forward, Weiss instinctively wrapped her hand around Ruby's waist to support her; the action brought the two girls closer. With her head pounding, Ruby rested it against Weiss's shoulder, hoping that she wouldn't mind. Weiss didn't say anything so Ruby took it as approval. Slowly the two girls made their way out of the little noodle shop.

"I think it'll be best to take the bus back to Beacon." Weiss declared. Ruby was so exhausted that all she could respond with was a soft 'hmm'.

* * *

Ruby's eyes fluttered open to early morning sunlight spilling into the shared dorm room. Ruby rubbed her eyes and rolled over. Despite last night, her headache had eased off and she was feeling much better. It appeared that all she needed was a good night's sleep. And then she realised what the sun in the room meant. Weiss had let her sleep in again.

"Weiss!" Ruby shouted from her bunk bed, hoping that Weiss was still in the room. The bathroom door opened and Weiss's head peaked out from behind it.

"Oh good, you're awake. I was hoping you were going to wake up soon. I didn't want to have to wake you up."

"You let me sleep in again!" Ruby yelled down in frustration at her partner.

"Hey, don't blame me. After seeing your condition last night I figured you wouldn't have wanted to go to class anyway. I was going to let the nurse know on the way to class."

"I appreciate the sentiment Weiss, but really I'm feeling much better now." Ruby said truthfully. She jumped down from her bed as if to prove to Weiss that she was capable of going to class.

"Are you sure you're okay Ruby. I think you should at least go to see the nurse." Ruby was now behind the bunk bed where her clothes were neatly staked and Weiss had turned her back to give her leader some privacy as she changed out of her pyjamas and into her school uniform.  
"If it makes you feel better then fine. I'll go after classes." Ruby gave in as she clasped her red cape around her neck.

"You'd better. We can't have a sick leader." This comment made Ruby chuckle as both girls left the classroom. It was odd to see Weiss being so caring, but Ruby wasn't opposed to the idea.

* * *

"Arghh!" Nora yelled out as she swung her hammer into the the beowulf's stomach, sending it flying into the adjacent wall. It was the class just after lunch and Team RWBY sat in Glynda Goodwitch's class and today they were doing practical assessments. Ruby watched as Nora pummelled the Grimm with her hammer, a strange glee on her face as she did so. Eventually, the beowulf crumbled away into black particles and Nora stood triumphantly, though looking a little disappointed that it was all over.

"Is it just me or does Nora get way too excited when she's fighting?" Blake whispered to her team members.

"Maybe a little" Ruby responded.

"Nah, I think it's good. Nora needs to release her energy somehow. Could you imagine if she didn't" Yang retorted.

"it'd be like that time she drank coffee, but all the time." Ruby giggled. Unfortunately, this remark had caught Glynda's attention.

"If you seem to find this all so amusing Miss Rose, then you can go next." Glynda Goodwitch's authoritative tone cut across the room and everyone's attention was switched to the girls who were sitting in the back of the class. Ruby groaned internally and gave Goodwitch a sheepish smile. Fighting some Grimm was what she wanted to do least right now. She still wasn't feeling 100 percent. But from her teacher's glare, it was obvious that there was no getting out of it. Carrying her precious Crescent Rose, Ruby made her way down to the arena at the front of the class. She opened up her scythe and got into a battle stance, ready for whatever Grimm she was going to face. Using her semblance, Glynda opened the double doors on the far wall to reveal a boar Grimm. It came rushing out at full speed and Ruby had to skilfully jump over it and to the other side of the arena to avoid being hit. Using the distance to her advantage, she rested Crescent Rose on the ground and shot bullet after bullet at the boar, but this did little to slow it down due it's tough, armour-like skin. As it came chasing after her, she once again was forced to leap out of the way. As she landed, a strange dizziness overtook her and she found it difficult to see properly. Details were impossible to make out, all she could see was a blur of colours and smudges of shapes. Her entire body ached and the deep thumping had returned to her head. She heard the boar shriek as it prepared itself for another attack. Straining her eyes, Ruby was able to focus her vision enough to see the running Grimm. In order to protect herself, she raised her scythe. She brought it down, not on the Grimm itself as she was going for, but rather wobbled too far to the right. This left her open to attack. The boar rammed its head and tusks into Ruby's stomach and she went flying as her aura failed to activate to protect her. Her body slammed into the wall and went limp.

"Ruby!" A horrified Weiss and Yang cried out in unison. The entire class was still with shock. As the boar got ready to make another attack, Glynda, who had made her way down to the arena, brought her riding crop firmly on its head with a crack. The Grimm disintegrated into black particles and Glynda joined the remainder of Team RWBY who were now huddling around their leader.

Ruby's vision was hazing and there was a loud ringing in her ears that caused everything to sound muffled. She was somewhat aware that her team members were surrounding her. She could make out Glynda telling someone to get the nurse and a hand on her shoulder which could have been Weiss's before everything faded black.


	3. Diagnosis

Blake, Yang and Weiss walked in silence behind two nurses who were carrying Ruby on a stretcher. All three of them were too worried to say anything to the others. Weiss couldn't help but feel guilty. There had been all the warning signs that something was wrong last night. She shouldn't have ignored them. She should have made Ruby go to the Nurse's office this morning, or at least stay in bed. As they reached the infirmary, Ruby was gently placed on a hospital bed and the nurse immediately went to work; taking blood tests, blood pressure and hooking Ruby up to an IV. The entire time, Yang hadn't left her sisters side. She standing by her bed, holding her hand and brushing her black and red hair. Meanwhile, Weiss and Blake were standing behind her awkwardly, almost feeling as if they were intruding on something private and not really knowing what to do. After a few moments of this silence, Blake stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on Yang's shoulder.

"She'll be fine Yang. She just got a little hurt in battle. You can't say that that isn't somewhat expected here."

Yang looked over her shoulder at her partner. She gave her a sad look and shook her head.

"No, she shouldn't have been hurt this badly from one hit. Something's wrong."

After Nurse Barton was done examining Ruby, she finally addressed the three other girls in the room.

"Have you noticed anything unusual in Miss Rose's behaviour recently? Trouble getting to sleep or lose of appetite?"

"She has been sleeping in a lot lately." Blake observed before turning to Weiss, "I think you said something about her needing sleep." Weiss nodded in response. Everyone's eyes turned to her, clearly wanting her to elaborate.

"When we went out last night, she wasn't really feeling well. At one point she just put her head down on the table and she couldn't even walk by herself." Everyone looked at her a little shocked, but Yang looked completely furious.

"You knew that she wasn't well and you didn't do anything!" Yang yelled at her team member. Weiss wasn't exactly surprised, Yang was very protective of her younger sister, but it still wasn't a good feeling to be yelled at.

"Hey, I didn't wake her up so she could rest and I tried to get her to go to the nurse this morning, but you know how Ruby is. Awfully stubborn." Weiss retorted. This seemed to satisfy Yang, at least a little, but she still gave Weiss a quick glare. Nurse Barton quickly intervened.

"Thank you for this information Miss Schnee. It'll definitely help us get to the bottom with what's wrong. More than likely it's just a virus that's weakened her defences. You girls should get back to class. Your friend is safe here."

"Will she be here for long?" Blake inquired. After all, the team needed their leader.

"That depends on how long it takes to get a diagnosis. Now run along girls." The girls complied and headed back to Glynda Goodwitch's class. Before leaving the infirmary, Weiss looked over her shoulder one last time to see Ruby lying in the bed. She was still knocked out cold. Yang's words hadn't done anything to help Weiss's conscience and she still felt that she should have acted much earlier, even if it meant dragging Ruby down to the nurse herself. Still, it did nothing good for her to dwell, so she joined her team-mates and got back to class.

* * *

"Nnngh"

Ruby struggled to open her eyes against the blinding light. Her head felt light and woozy but in comparison, her limbs were as heavy as rocks, weighing her down to the bed. She had been half asleep so she hadn't noticed it before but it hit her hard now and she almost screamed out. The pain through her was immense and piercing. She realised now that it was the reason why she couldn't move her arms or legs. Her breath grew heavy, a combination of her taking on the pain and her struggle to make her body move. Trying not to panic she stopped struggling, it would just wear her out faster. Just try something small first. That was her plan. After resting for a few moments she went back to trying to open her eyes. The instinctively snapped shut the second that they hit the blinding light. But Ruby forced them open again. This time they stayed open a little longer before being engulfed in the cool darkness once again. Eventually, Ruby had gotten her eyes to stay open long enough to make out some of her surroundings. She was in a bed that was dressed entirely in white. The light above was the source of her current main obstacle and she couldn't see the rest of the room due to it being fenced of by a blue curtain that ran from floor to ceiling. From there it was easy to conclude where she was. A hospital. This made her relax considerably. She was in no danger if she was in a hospital. She decided that her next best course of action was to let someone know that she was awake. She tried to speak, but the air got caught in her throat, sending her into a coughing fit. Almost immediately after the noise echoed through the room, the curtain parted at one side revealing a nurse.

"I see you're awake, Miss Rose." The nurse smiled down at the Ruby.

"W-what am I doing here?" Inquired Ruby. The last few hours were hazy and she struggled to recall what she had been doing before she passed out.

"You took a bad blow in Professor Goodwitch's class." Nurse Barton explained. "Your team-mate Miss Schnee has also informed me that you were rather unwell last night, so we'll keep you in here for a couple days. An illness may have caused your aura not to react and protect you during battle." It was a lot of information to take in and Ruby couldn't find the words to respond, so she simply nodded.

"And how are you feeling right now?"

"My arms and legs are quite sore and I'm a little light headed."

"That's to be expected, you did take a large amount of damage. I can get you some pain killers to help if you'd like."

"Yes, please." Ruby didn't want to sound desperate, but she'd do anything to get rid of the pain. Nurse Barton left and returned with two little white pills and a glass of water. After wiggling around in an attempt to sit up, Ruby gulped down both pills and the glass of water. It felt nice to have the soothing water gushing down her rather parched throat and maybe it was just the placebo effect of knowing that she had taken medication, but the ache that ran through her body had already lessened.

"I'll have to take some more tests. Blood tests and such, but we'll wait until after you've rested."

"Does my team know that I'm awake?"

"They are currently in class, but they be notified as soon as class ends."

* * *

"Little sting." warned Nurse Barton as she drew the needle closer to Ruby's arm. Ruby looked away. Maybe it was childish, but she really didn't like needles, especially blood tests. They just took so long and it made her arm feel like it was going to fall off. Yang squeezed Ruby's other hand and stroked her hair, knowing that her little sister was not a huge fan of needle. She and the others had come to the infirmary as soon as class had ended and they had been told that Ruby had woken up. When they'd come to visit, Ruby had mustered a brave face, not wanting them to know how much pain she was really in. They needed their leader to be strong. This was helped greatly by the pain killers that had finally kicked in. Ruby let out a small sigh of relief as Nurse Barton removed the needle from her arm. She looked up and Yang and gave her a reassuring smile. Yang was the only one in the room. Weiss had an unexpected visit from Winter and Yang didn't know where Blake was. After staying in the room for about 20 minutes after they all arrived, she had just left without a word.

As Nurse Barton wheeled all of her medical equipment away from the bed and sent off the blood sample for testing, Yang let out a sharp "oh". She looked like she had forgotten something. She turned around and walked to her backpack which was sitting at a chair in the corner. Taking something out of the bag, she quickly hurried back over and revealed the items in her hand to Ruby.

"Thought that you would get a little bored here, so I bought these. I remembered how much they cheer you up." She explained while handing the comic books over. Taking the comics in her hands, Ruby felt a wave of nostalgia as she remembered the countless hours she had spent as a child pouring over comics like these. Seeing stories about Huntsmen and Huntresses and been a key factor in her training to be one now.

"Thanks sis." Ruby knew that she wouldn't be able to explain in words how grateful she was, but Yang understood. She'd do anything to make her little sister smile.

* * *

Ruby closed the comic book and let it slip onto the cover of her blankets. It had been a good distraction, but now it was done. The rest of the pile were sitting on her bedside table, just out of reach without stretching and Ruby really didn't feel like exerting herself. Yang had since left a while ago for dinner. She had tried to stay, claiming that she would eat something later or get Blake to bring her food up from dinner, but Nurse Barton was hearing none of it.

"I won't have another student falling sick because they are refusing to eat. Besides, Ruby needs some rest, without you exciting her." She had a point here as for the past hour, Yang had been making Ruby laugh by telling her funny stories and of course, many bad puns. Before she had left, she had given Ruby the first comic book, knowing that she hated being bored. Now she was left not exactly knowing what to do. Fortunately, she wasn't left to her own devices long before Nurse Barton appeared in the room and walked towards Ruby's bed. She had received the results from Ruby's blood test and wanted to talk to her about them.

"Miss Rose," she announced as she pulled a chair to the side of the bed and sat down. "Your blood test results have come in and I wanted to discuss them with you. I need know that you are up to discussing this now." Her face was grim and serious. Ruby instantly realised that something was wrong.

"Yes, I'm fine to talk about it now."

"We now understand why you sustained as much damaged during your fight. It appears that some kind of bacteria is attacking you aura, meaning that it can't protect you during battles and you won't be able to engage you semblance. I've never seen or heard of anything like this before. I don't want to scare you but, left untreated this condition would result in death."

Ruby just sat in her bed, not knowing how she was supposed to respond. She had known that whatever had happened wasn't anything good, but she never imagined that it could be this serious. After a silence that felt like it went for eternity, she finally found her voice.

"Is there any treatments available?" She could barely muster more than a whisper.

"I can't say myself, but I'm hardly an expert in this area. I'm sending your results to some professionals who have more of an understanding and expertise in the area." Ruby swallowed and nodded. The news still hadn't sunk in. Her stomach felt twisted and churned and a wave of nausea washed over her. She did her best to suppress it.

"Can you not tell anyone just yet? I want to be able to tell my team myself."

"Yes, I can do that, although your father will have to be notified to the school."

"T-thank you." Seeing how distressed Ruby was she asked her if she needed anything.

"Umm, just one of the comics from the table thanks." After handing the comic over, Nurse Barton went back to her office in a joint room. Ruby opened the comic and lifted it so that it covered her face. Although she knew that the nurse was in a different room, the privacy however small it was, was comforting to her. She tried to remain optimistic. After all, they weren't 100% sure that she couldn't be cured.


	4. Support

**Author's Note: Sorry for the wait between updates, but it turns out to be quite hard to maintain an update schedule and successfully complete Year 12. Now that Year 12 is done for me and it's a new year, more frequent and regular updates should be coming. Thank you so much for being patient with me.**

The morning sun streamed through the window, lighting the room enough that Weiss could make out the sleeping figures of Yang and Blake. They didn't usually wake up as early as she did and today was no different. Rubbing sleep out of her eyes Weiss willed herself to get up. Due to recent events, her studies had been neglected and she couldn't afford to fall behind. As she changed into her signature white dress, she couldn't help but glance up at the empty bunk above her and she remembered Ruby's sleeping silhouette from just a few days before. Weiss shook her head. If she kept on thinking about her injured leader, she would get out of the right mindset and as today was a Saturday she needed to spend all day working to catch up, not worrying. She left a note for her team mates, telling them to get her from the library when they woke up so that they could all get breakfast together, grabbed her books and headed for the door.

Being a Saturday morning, most students weren't up and the library was mostly deserted, except for a few older students. This was how Weiss liked it. It was much easier to focus when there were no students mucking around and making to much noise. But today, the quite just made her feel lonely and isolated. What was so different about today? She made her way to one of the smaller tables near the window and proceeded to burry herself in her books. However, she had only gotten through a few pages of her assigned chapter before she eventually gave and closed her book. Abandoning her things, she rose from her chair and looked out the window. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't fully focus. A walk. Yes, that would clear her head. They had all been under a lot of stress lately and she had to take care of herself.

Despite it being the beginning of summer, the morning air was cool. The courtyard was empty, everyone was still warmly wrapped in their beds. Well, almost everyone. Breaking the silence was the sounds of metal slashing through the air and small grunts of exertion. Not at all to Weiss's surprise, it was Pyrrha. She was training in a small outdoor arena in the courtyard, somewhat excluded from everything else. Weiss watched the skilled huntress-in-training bring her Xiophos sword down on dummy after dummy as Pyrrha perfectly dodged and used to shield to avoid flying arrows that were being launched automatically from the side of the arena. Weiss watched her from a distance, not wanting to distract her. Pyrrha was so focused and driven in her task that she hadn't seen her sole audience member. She fought on for another 10 minutes before she had hit all the targets on the mannequins and the arrows stopped firing. It wasn't until she had made her way to a bench and grabbed her water bottle that she looked up and saw Weiss. She gave her a friendly smile and waved her over.

"Pyrrha, good morning. That was some very excellent fighting. Are you always up this early?"

"Thank you. Unfortunately yes. Having a reputation means that I need to keep up my skills. Plus the Vytal Festival is coming up soon and I want to be ready. What about you, not many students are willing to be up and about on a Saturday morning."

"With everything going on, school work hasn't exactly been a priority. I was studying in the library."

"Was studying?" Pyrrha questioned. Weiss contemplated lying as she wasn't exactly the best at opening up or expressing her feelings. But she decided against it. Clearly the situation was impacting her life and she didn't want it to get any worse. Besides Pyrrha was kind and understanding and it was better than talking to any of her other team members who also had their own problems with their leader being sick. Yang was visibly concerned and angry while Blake had gone quieter than usually, reaching out more to Yang than to Weiss. With a sigh, she told Pyrrha the truth.

"I was, but I'm just a little too distracted right now. Our teams just been sort of flat without RWBY." She explained. Pyrrha gave her a concerted look.

"Come on, sit down." Pyrrha indicated to the bench and both girls sat down. "How has Ruby been? I've been meaning to visit more, but so many people have visited and I know how much she needs rest."

"To be honest, I think that she's been putting on a brave face the last few times I've seen. She certainly isn't getting better. If anything, it's worse."

"That's awful to hear. How have you been coping with it?" Pyrrha's face was covered with concern. She knew how close the two partners were and that Weiss wasn't exactly one to open up voluntarily. For moment, it looked like Weiss was going to brush off the question with a stereotypical I'm fine, but she appeared to reconsider. She looked down at the ground while answering the question, as if it was difficult to look Pyrrha in the eye while being vulnerable.

"If I'm being completely honest, not as well as I've liked. I mean, I knew that I'd be concerned for Ruby and it would be hard, but I can't do anything. I can't study, I've been having trouble sleeping. All I want to do is be with her and make sure she's okay, but at the same time I don't want to crowd her either and Yang is with her every second of her free time. It would feel like I was intruding if I was there too." Weiss paused and looked up at Pyrrha, revealing tiny drops of water clustering at the corner of her eyes. "Pyrrha, I feel lost. And I don't completely understand why."

Pyrrha grasped Weiss by the shoulder and gave her a knowing yet sad smile.

"Oh Weiss," she spoke sympathetically. "You and Ruby have been partners for a long time now. It's natural for you to feel strange without her there. Especially with your feelings for her." At the red-head's last sentence, Weiss looked at her in shock, challenging her words.

"What are you talking about? Ruby's just a really good friend." Weiss countered strongly, but she couldn't quite meet Pyrrha's eyes. Pyrrha let out a little chuckle.

"Oh come on Weiss. I've seen the way that you look at her and the way you warmed up to her so quickly. You don't have to hide it or be ashamed. Besides, weren't you on a date the night before Ruby got sick?"

Weiss took in a long, deep breath. She weighed up her options. She wouldn't get any advice if she kept her problems hidden. Her thoughts flashed to her father. What would he say if he found out that she… no. She didn't have to be scared of him anymore. She wasn't there, she was at Beacon with friends that supported her.

"It wasn't really a date, I mean I don't think Ruby considered it that. It was just a girls night out. But, I guess that I wouldn't have minded if it was a date."

"Admitting your feelings is a start. Do you feel better?"

Oddly enough, Weiss did have to concede that her mind didn't feel quite as troubled, her burden now being shared.

"So what do I do now?" Weiss inquired to Pyrrha, her eyes pleading for some guidance.

"Right now, just be there for Ruby. And don't isolate yourself. You have a wonderful team and I know that team JNPR will always have your back too."

"Thanks Pyrrha. I don't think I realised how much I needed to hear that. I'm not exactly used to confiding in others."

"Well, you have plenty of people to do that with now, and I will also be hear if you want to talk."

* * *

Ruby tossed in her bed, knowing that the stabbing pain in her chest meant that she wasn't going to get back to sleep. She turned, with some effort, onto her right side to see the faint rays of morning seeping into the room and digital clock showing that it was 6:30 am. She had tried desperately not to think about what Nurse Barton had told her the following day, but now when there was no-one working busily in the room, no visitors trying to cheer her up and all the other patients in the ward were still asleep; with nothing now to distract her mind, she couldn't help but worry about what was wrong with her. For the most part, she was rather positive, or tried to be. Ruby wasn't one to be pessimistic, preferring rather to believe that things in the end would resolve themselves. Her current predicament was no exception to this and was probably the only reason that she hadn't had a complete meltdown yet. She went over the positives again, the only coping mechanism that she had at her disposal.

Nurse Barton was not an expert in this particular field of medicine which meant that.. There was still the possibility of treatments or a cure. Nurse Barton would be here in a few hours to give her another dose of pain killers, which were reason number two for Ruby not going crazy from the pain.

She still hadn't told anyone that her condition may be incurable and perhaps fatal. It was probable that the school had already informed Tai and perhaps Yang, but if Yang knew, she hadn't given away any clue that this was the case.

She planned to let everyone know soon though, after today when she would hopefully know for sure. Nurse Barton had managed to contact a top expert in fungi and bacteria and he was coming in from Atlas today to examine Ruby in person. One of the perks to going to such a prestigious school as Beacon was premium care and the best doctors.

Apart for her condition, there was something else playing on the young girl's mind. She had had heaps of visitors, even from some students that she was barely more than acquainted with. Of course Yang had been by her side every spare moment that she could be and Blake often accompanied her, but Ruby had hardly seen much of Weiss at all. This fact wouldn't have been as surprising if it had been the beginning of the year, but they were now a fair way into the school year and the two partners had made so much progress since their first meeting. Hell, they had gone out just the two of them a few nights ago. Ruby analysed that night. It had been the first time that Weiss and herself had gone to a movie just the two of them, not with the whole team. She couldn't help wondering, was it supposed to be a date or just a night out with a close friend? And possibly a more important question, what did Ruby want it to be? It was a difficult question to answer. She knew that she definitely liked spending time with the heiress and they had gotten much closer, but Ruby wasn't exactly accustomed to having really close friends. Of course she'd had friends at Signal, but she was always focused on training and she had Yang so the demand for close friends wasn't really there. Maybe that's all this was, Weiss was just the closest friend she'd ever had…maybe.


	5. Always Here

Ruby languidly pushed her soup with her spoon around, causing little ripples in the liquid's surface. Her appetite had completely vanished.

"Come on sis, you've got to eat some more if you want to get better." Yang urged her sister on for the third time, being ever protective as always. As was the routine, Yang was at Ruby's side almost a moment after waking up, opting out of breakfast in the dinning hall but rather grabbing a piece of toast and coffee on the way. She was now reading a magazine and sitting in a chair diagonally in front of Ruby's bed, so that she didn't have to move to see the yellow-haired huntress-in-training.

"I'm sick of soup!" Ruby exclaimed in protest. It was true that she'd eaten a lot of soup lately. Nurse Barton said it would be easier to digest. "Besides, I'm too nervous to eat."

"Because of the doctor coming today?" Asked Yang. Ruby nodded. Yang put her magazine away and approached the bed, placing a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder. "I know it's scary sis. This whole situation is a mess, but at least we should have some sort of proper answer today, even if it's not so good…" Yang turned her face away from Ruby, but she had already caught a a glimpse of the crystal-clear tear. It didn't take much for Ruby to put two and two together.

"You know?" Those two words were all she needed to ask as evidently the blonde knew what she was talking about. Yang only nodded and then was silent. Ruby waited patiently, obviously expecting to hear an explanation. Yang obliged.

"Dad called me yesterday. The school contacted him and I guess he thought I should know. I-I didn't want to bring it up with you yet. I didn't know if it was something you were ready to talk about yet."

"Yang. I'm scared." Ruby's voice wobbled as she attempted to sound calm and in control, when the reality was that she wasn't. Yang looked back at her and gave her a weak smile. Her eyes were now misty.

"I know." She responded."Me too. But I'm always here for you. And don't forget you have such a supportive team behind you. I know that Weiss and Blake will be here for you too."

Yang pulled Ruby into a tight hug and couldn't help a silent sob escape her lips. Ruby nestled into her older sister's strong arms, allowing the protective feeling to chase away her fear and calm her, if only for a moment. Both sisters stayed like this for some time, not speaking, but just letting each others presence and the soft sound of breathing fill the silence.

The moment was eventually broken by the sound of the sliding door opening. Both girls turned their attention to it to see Weiss quietly slide into the room. After talking to Pyrrha she decided to stop procrastinating and visit Ruby. She hoped that getting over her fear and going once would make it easier to go again, however at the sight of the two sisters embraced and their tears, she looked startled and instinctively moved backwards, back towards the door.

"Uhh, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt." While she apologised she approached the door, slowly, as if going any faster would further disrupt the sisters. "I can come back later." But before she could finish her escape, a small voice stopped her.

"Weiss, wait." By this point, Yang had let her little sister go and Ruby was watching Weiss intently. The words had left her mouth before she could even comprehend the situation. But she had missed Weiss so much and wanted her to visit so badly that she couldn't let her get away now. Weiss stopped and cautiously turned around. "Please stay." At hearing this, Weiss felt conflicted. It was such a relief to her that Ruby wanted her to stay but at the same time she was aware that she had ruined a moment between the siblings and she couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Sure." Her response came out awkwardly as she looked to Yang for confirmation. Yang could sense that both girls wanted to talk to each other and she decided to give them some space.

"I should go get some food. I'll be back in a bit. Want anything Weiss?" Weiss shook her head and with that, Yang gave her sister one final hug, telling her to call her if she needed anything, and left. And then the partners were left by themselves.

Weiss approached the bed. Ruby looked up and smiled at her.

"Hey." Her voice was quiet, just loud enough for Weiss to hear. Weiss returned the greeting. The unfamiliar silence in the room exposed the unpleasantness of the situation.

"So. How are you feeling?" Weiss approached Ruby's bed near the end so that she wouldn't have to turn her head.

"A little better I guess. The pain killers help. Nurse Barton has a professional doctor from Atlas coming in today for a second opinion. I think she's a little stuck." After yet another silent pause, it was clear to both girls that small talk wasn't going to cut it. As much as Ruby wanted to tell herself that it was fine that Weiss hadn't visited much, the truth was that it wasn't okay. She had to know why. And the only way to find that out was to ask.

"I haven't seen you much in the last few days. What have you been up to?" Ruby tried to conceal her hurt in the question by making it casual, but it didn't take much for Weiss to see through it. Ruby wasn't exactly the best actress.

"Oh, you know. Studying. I can't afford to fall behind." As she answered, Weiss hung her head in shame, opting to look at the floor rather than the pleading silver eyes that were glued on her face. Despite understanding what Ruby was really asking her, Weiss didn't want to answer her. Sure, she could give her the same reasons that she had to Pyrrha, but in this moment she had realised that they weren't true at all. They were just distractions from the truth that she didn't want to face.

"I missed you." The words were spoken so softly and with so much feeling and longing that Weiss was forced to look at Ruby's face. The tears forming at the corners of her eyes were almost too much and she had to actively resist pulling Ruby into the tightest embrace.

"I know. And I'm sorry. I should have been here for you. I should have been a supportive partner but, if I'm telling you the truth, I was scared. I am scared."

"I get it. I'm scared of this illness too. It's okay Weiss." At this point, Weiss found herself unable to look her partner in the eye. Instead she turned and looked out the window.

"The problem is that I'm not just scared about you being sick. There's something else." She wrapped her arms around her chest, shielding herself from an imagined cold.

"What else are you scared of?" Ruby was now genuinely confused. "Maybe I can help you with it." She reached out and grabbed Weiss's arm. With enough effort she was able to pull her closer to the bed and turn her around. Upon doing so, Ruby was confronted with a clearly distraught Weiss. Crystal-clear tears flowed down her pink cheeks. Carefully, Weiss was able to elude Ruby's grip and gracefully wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her jacket.

"I don't know if you can help when you're part of the problem." Now Ruby was not only confused, but she was hurt. Her heart ached at the thought of her contributing in any way to Weiss's pain. She thought that they had come so far since the beginning of the year, that she had somewhat been able to coax the heiress out of her shell. She thought that she had made some sort of special connection with her.

"Did I do something? Weiss, was it something I said or did I" Weiss cut Ruby off with a violent shake of the head.

"No, no it's nothing like that. It's all my fault. I just started caring about you too much. And now I'm scared that I'm going to mess it all up. That I'm going to lose the only friends that I've ever had."

"Weiss, I promise you, no matter what you say right here, right now, you are not going to lose me as a friend. I'm not going anywhere."

"Ruby, I'm sorry. I-I think I'm falling in love with you." Weiss's eyes instantly squeezed shut, scared of her partner's reaction to her revelation.

Ruby's eyes grew wide and her heart started pounding, fast. The confession hadn't scared or upset her at all as the white-haired girl had imagined. If anything, the feelings that it elicited were relief, and excitement.

Instead of receiving a slap in the face, shouting or any other type of anger as she had expected, all Weiss felt was a hand grab her dress's collar, pulling her down, warm breath on her cheek and finally soft, unexperienced lips tentatively meeting her own.


	6. In the Summer Sun

"Just a sharp pinch." Ruby held her breath. Her left arm started to burn and go numb, but she did her best to hold it in place. She had never been vey good with needles, but today she had something to distract her. Weiss. She couldn't believe what had happened. Even though it had just been a few hours earlier, it felt like forever ago. Her mind kept pouring over the events, confirming for the millionth time that it was all real.

-Flashback-

Ruby couldn't believe that she had been so bold. Instigating the first move was out of character for her, especially since it was in an area that she was very inexperienced in. She only hoped that she wouldn't regret it. The soft kiss was brought to a stop as Weiss gently pulled away. Instantly Ruby's mind started reeling with regret. Weiss hadn't liked it. It was too soon, they weren't ready. Her fears were absolved completely however when she saw the warm smile beaming down at her.

"That was unexpected." Weiss giggled. Ruby's cheeks were flushed and her breathing had noticeably increased. For the first time since she had gotten sick, she didn't notice her aching body are the constant drumming in her head. All she was focused on was the moment and the white-haired girl in front of her, as if that was all that mattered. Weiss smiled down at Ruby and slowly brushed a lock of hair away from her partner's face, taking her time and lingering on her soft cheek.

"But good?" Ruby asked, a tiny bit of doubt still niggling at the back of her brain.

"Yes, very good." Responded Weiss.

"So, what does this mean now? I mean, are we…" Ruby blushed with embarrassment, feeling very self-conscious.

"Together?" Weiss finished her sentence for her. "If that's what you want." Weiss's voice was little more than a whisper, making the moment feel even more intimate.

"I think I'd like that."

"I would too." At this point, Ruby's mind was reeling. She couldn't help but imagine what they're future might now look like. She hadn't realised it before, but now she couldn't believe that it had taken this long for her to understand her feelings. Being with Weiss now just felt so right. She could only hope that Weiss was feeling the same way. After talking for a bit, Weiss had to go. Despite her wanting to stay, Professor Goodwitch had strongly recommended that the remaining members of team RWBY should try and attend class to avoid falling behind. They hadn't told anyone yet. It had only been a few hours anyway. Ruby was definitely nervous of telling Yang. The blonde tended to assume a rather protective stance when it came to her little sister. But for the first time in ages, she was more optimistic about nearly everything.

-Present-

One of the things that couldn't be grouped in the optimistic section was her illness. The increase in pain as the needle sliding out of her arm brought her back to the present.

"All done." The doctor said as he smiled at Ruby.

"Is this the last test?" Ruby asked hopefully. Doctor Rhodes had arrived late that morning, not too long after Weiss had left and the day had been filled with medical test after test. Since they didn't know too much about her illness they had to check everything.

"Yes, that's everything for today until the results come in." Responded Doctor Rhodes. Ruby sighed in relief. She wasn't one to complain, but all the tests and procedures had worn her down, not to mention that some were a little painful. Doctor Rhodes had kept a cheerful and optimistic demeanour throughout the days proceedings and Ruby didn't know how to take it. Did it mean that nothing negative had been discovered yet or was it just something it reassure her. Ruby was still considered a child after all and that smile could possibly be there to protect her from the truth.

"How long until we know what this is?" Ruby asked. She, and everyone else, were very anxious for a diagnosis.

"None of the test results will be ready until tomorrow at least. And then they need to be analysed. I'm guessing it will take at least a few days. Until then, I think it's best to continue your current treatment, maybe trying to lower the dose of painkillers if you're able to handle that."

"If it might be able to help me get better, I'll definitely try it."

"That's a good attitude to have. I'll see you when we have your results and Nurse Barton will be here to check up on you later." And with that, Ruby was left alone again. Her pile of comic books lay untouched on her bedside table. Nothing could distract her from the buzz in her mind. She really couldn't wait until Weiss was done with class and they could talk more about their future, however, there was something that she was apprehensive about, something that she was even feeling guilty about. Weiss still had no idea how serious Ruby's condition could be.

* * *

Weiss didn't want to leave Ruby alone, however, she was eager to get back to class and the time apart gave her plenty of time to go over everything and figure out exactly how she felt. While she hadn't been expecting the kiss, it was by no means unwelcome. What shocked her more was the fact that Ruby felt anywhere now how she felt. Even Weiss wild admit that not so long ago, she hadn't been the nicest person to be around and in that regards, part of her couldn't understand just what it was that Ruby could see in her. Second-guessing herself and feeling insecure wasn't something completely foreign to the heiress, especially not with the family that she had to grow up with, but it was strange that these feelings were being elicited by her partner. Since they were able to get past the initial rough patch, she had also know where they stood and what their relationship meant. Now it was all unknown, but that wasn't exactly a bad thing. Weiss planned extensively and she also knew how everything in her life would go. Attend Beacon, top her class, get perfect grades, graduate with honours and prove to everyone, especially her father, what an amazing and talented huntress she will be. Having her feelings returned by her team mate wasn't part of that plan, but that it all the more exciting.

Entering the lecture room, Weiss was glad to see Blake and Yang sitting near the front of the class. Knowing how close and protective Yang was of her little sister, part of her hadn't expected Yang to show up to class today and she took it as a good sign that she felt comfortable leaving her sister alone, at least until lunch. Of course, she did feel a little awkward knowing that she had kissed Yang's sister earlier that day, and it hadn't been hard to decide that she wasn't going to say anything until Ruby was ready. She slipped into the seat next to Yang who acknowledged her with a friendly smile.

"Hey, I'm glad to see you here. I'll be honest, I didn't expect you back in class so soon," said Weiss, hoping that she didn't sound rude her out of place. Thankfully, the blonde didn't take it the wrong way.

"I'm not going to lie, I am still concerned and I'm not 100% okay with leaving her by herself, but me being there isn't going to make it go away and I know Ruby. She'd feel guilty that she was keeping me from class." Yang explained, half telling the truth and half lying, more so to convince herself than Weiss.

The class went by rather uneventful with just Port going off on his usual tangents. The second that they were dismissed, Yang and Weiss eagerly left for the hospital wing with Blake tagging along since she didn't want to eat lunch without her team. If Yang wondered why Weiss was now suddenly keen to go visit Ruby after being distant the last few days, she didn't say anything. And Weiss was very grateful that she didn't have to explain anything.

* * *

Ruby was more than happy to be surrounded by her team again. She had been progressing well and thanks to pain killers, was feeling better too so Nurse Barton gave her permission to leave the infirmary for an hour. Not wanting to be overwhelmed by everyone, they had opted out of going to the cafeteria and instead sat at one of the picnic tables in the outside square. Weiss and Blake had gotten some food for everyone from the cafeteria and they were enjoying their lunch in the sun. Ruby found it both annoying and reliving that she was with Yang and Blake as well as Weiss. On the one hand it meant that they couldn't talk one on one and there would certainly be no more kisses, but at the same time it meant that she had less opportunity to stuff it all up. Neither of them had been in a relationship before and Ruby wasn't very social at the best of times so awkwardness seemed inevitable and that terrified her. Then there was still the matter of the severity of her illness. Ruby had decided that it was best if she didn't mention anything to Weiss until she knew for sure. Even though it was only a few days delay, she felt like she was lying to Weiss and consequently she felt very guilty. Still, she thought, it was no help to dwell on these things now. Instead she focused on the present. Surrounded by her closest friends, enjoying good food in the summer sun. And she realised that nothing could dampen this moment here, mystery illness or otherwise. And it made her feel so lucky and grateful that she had this support system to rely on, no matter how bad things got, were going to get. And in the next few weeks she was going to be 100 times more grateful.


	7. Reveal

The next few days passed in a whir. Weiss spent every waking moment that she could at Ruby's side, except when she had class and when Ruby and Yang needed their sisterly bonding time. They did whatever they could with Ruby being sick. Short walks, movie nights and meals being the easiest. It was clear to the couple that Yang was becoming quite confused and suspicious of the two spending so much time together and her sisterly time was being cut back. They hadn't told anyone yet, being so new to it themselves, but, especially with Yang, they both knew that it was only a matter of time before they would have to reveal their blossoming relationship. The more time that the new couple spent together, the more that they connected. Weiss found herself trusting Ruby more and more, and felt comfortable revealing things to her that she had never told anyone, except Winter of course. The effects of the relationship were very clear to Ruby as she didn't feel as sore as she had been, when she was with Weiss it was impossible to focus on anything else. She wasn't ruminating about any possible diagnosis but instead was just living in the moment.

"Weiss, where are we going?" A blindfolded Ruby asked, half curious and partly exasperated, as she was led around Beacon by Weiss.

"Just wait and see. You really have to learn a little patience you know."

"Well, you try walking around blindfolded! How long has it been, like 10 minutes!"

"We're nearly there. There's a few stairs we need to climb, just support yourself on my arm."

When the girls had slowly made their way up the staircase, Weiss eagerly ripped the blindfold from Ruby's face, revealing that they were at the top of Beacon tower. Near the balcony, Weiss had set up a rug, plenty of cushions and so much food that there was nearly no room for them to sit. Among the many items of food were Ruby's favourites; cookies, strawberries and a chocolate fondue to name a few. The low sun in the sky lit up the entire area with a radiant, soft yellow light. Golden hour.

"D-do you like it?" Weiss asked, suddenly feeling a little insecure and in need of some reassurance from her stunned girlfriend.

"Weiss. This is so beautiful!" She squealed as she pulled her into a warm embrace.

"I'm glad you like it." Weiss replied, her mouth bursting into a radiant smile. Ruby pulled Weiss's head closer to give her a soft kiss on the lips.

"It's perfect."

"Well, lets go and enjoy it then." She released herself from the embrace, grabbed Ruby's hand and, with little resistance from her partner, guided her over to the picnic. Before she sat down, Ruby went over to the railing. The view from the tower was amazing. She could see the rest of the school.

"I never realised how beautiful the view is from here." She said. Weiss came over to join her.

"Yeah, I thought that it would be the perfect place to watch the sunset. And I was thinking that when we're done here, we could go back to the dorm and you could show me how to play that video game that you're obsessed with." At this suggestion, Ruby's face lit up with pure childish joy at the prospect of sharing something that she was so passionate about.

"Yes! Sounds like a plan."

Both sat down and stared digging into the food. Ruby was very quick to go for the strawberries and cookies.

"You know, other foods do exist Ruby."

"I know, but strawberries and cookies are just so good. They're sweet, just like you."

"Oh, so now you think I'm sweet. What happened to ice queen?"

Ruby giggled, "Firstly, Jaune came up with that and you stopped being ice queen when you let your walls down and let me in."

"I guess so. I really was that bad when we first met, wasn't I." Ruby barely managed to stifle down her laugh. "It makes sense though. Before coming here, the only other person that I even connected with was Winter. I'd never gone to a proper school before. Father always insisted for us to be tutored at home. I suppose it's a bit of a miracle that he agreed to let me study here."

"He sounds like a tough guy to deal with."

"You have no idea. We always had to be perfect, and it was hard to face him if we weren't. The amount of freedom that I have here seems like a dream."

"If he's all that strict, how did you convince him to let you study here, instead of at Atlas?"

"It wasn't easy. He tested me very thoroughly and I would be lying if I said it didn't hurt. But to be here now, it was worth it." As Weiss spoke, she absentmindedly brought her left hand up to her forehead and lightly stroked the top of the scar over her left eye. "Sometimes I'm still scared that my father will change his mind and take me away."

At this, Ruby grabbed Weiss's right hand and looked her in the eye. Determination was written all over her face.

"Weiss, I'm not going to let that happen. We aren't going to let that happen. You're part of a team now." Weiss gave Ruby a thankful smile.

"Thanks" she said, and despite Ruby's clear, childish naivety, Weiss did feel better just from the fact that she had someone looking out for her. "Sorry for bringing down the mood."

"Oh, don't apologise Weiss. You can always talk to me about your problems. Speaking of which, I think we need to tell Yang." Weiss let out a groan.

"You're right, but how scared should I be of her protective older sister. Yang isn't going to punch me or anything is she?" Weiss knew enough about Yang at this point to know that you did not want to be on her bad side. Ruby could help but find Weiss's concerns a little amusing.

"I haven't been in a relationship before, but you guys are team mates. I think I should tell her by myself though, just to be safe."

"That is an idea I can get behind. Just let me know when you're going to do it so I can find a place to hide." Weiss insisted. Ruby burst out laughing which was met with a slight glare, however it didn't take long for that glare to change into a smirk. "We're a bit of a mess aren't we?" She said while laughing and shaking her head at their whole situation.

"Maybe, but I'm happy that we're a mess together." Ruby responded, as she took Weiss's hand in her own and interwound them.

* * *

Ruby couldn't stop fidgeting as she sat in the infirmary, waiting for Dr Rhodes. Yang was with her, but she was so nervous that she couldn't bring herself to speak. Especially since instead of her usual cool demeanour, Yang was clearly more agitated than Ruby. The potential for a diagnosis was weighing on both of the girls' minds. Ruby had known that Weiss had wanted to be with her during this meeting, to support her, but she hadn't been allowed. Yang was because she was family and is some respect Ruby was grateful for this since she still hadn't told Weiss the severity of her illness. That was another thing that was weighing on Ruby's mind and it certainly didn't help her nerves. Suddenly it all became too much and she had the urge to do something, anything to relieve this pressure before it suffocated her. There was nothing that anyone could do about the illness until she got a diagnosis, but Yang could help her with another thing.

"Yang, I need to tell you something. And you have to promise that you're not going to get mad." Ruby said, breaking the silence. Yang turned and looked at her little sister. Her concerned expression softened into a light smile.

"Ruby, you know you can tell me anything. I'm your big sister." She placed a comforting hand on the young girl's shoulder.

"Well I… Weiss and I we….." Ruby stammered, not knowing how to get the words out. She was gripped with fear, knowing that by saying it out loud, it would mean that it was real. She squeezed her eyes shut and took a long, deep breath in.

"WeissandIkissedandnowwe'resortofinarelationship." The words came tumbling out of her mouth so quickly that they blurred in ti one sentence. Ruby cautiously opened her eyes to gage her sisters reaction. Yang's expression was a mixture of confused and amused.

"What was that? Something about Weiss?" She asked. Evidently now she wasn't going to back down until she knew exactly what was on Ruby's mind. Ruby could already tell that she had been defeated.

"Weiss and I kissed about a week ago and we've kinda been seeing each other ever since." The silence that followed this confession lasted for far longer than Ruby had thought as Yang processed this new information. Ruby had expected that she would start yelling or tell her that it was a bad idea. This silent Yang was so foreign to her that it put her on edge.

"Is it serious? Not just a spur of the moment kiss but a proper relationship?" Ruby nodded, taking a moment to find her words again.

"I know that I want it to be. And I think that she does too. You've seen how much time we've been spending together." Ruby said. She felt a strange need to justify it, to get her sister's approval.

"Does she know how, uh, serious this situation could be?" Yang asked, gesturing to the medical exam room that they were currently waiting. Ruby shook her head and looked away, partly from shame and guilt. Even though she wasn't technically lying, she felt really bad at keeping information this important from her new… girlfriend? But things with Weiss had been going so well that she didn't want to break that perfect fantasy yet. She just wanted to escape from it.

"No, I didn't know if it was the right thing to do until we know for certain. Yang, how am I going to face her if this turns out to be really bad?" She turned her head back up to look at Yang, hoping to find some sort of reassurance and comfort. And as the best big sister, Yang did not disappoint.

"Oh, Ruby." She said as she wrapped her sister in her arms and held her as tightly as she could without suffocating her. Ruby had always found these hugs so protective, like Yang could block out the outside world. But of course, she couldn't. Especially not in this situation.

"You tell her the truth. I know that it's scary and definitely not the best circumstances to start a relationship, but it's happened now and we just have to deal with it. And although Weiss has definitely had her moments, we know her. She won't abandon or blame you Ruby. And if she does, as your older sister she will have to deal with. Plus, you will always have me and Dad."

"Thanks Yang. You're really not mad?"

"How could I be mad! Although, who would have guessed that you would get a girlfriend before me." Ruby couldn't help but smile and she felt more at ease with the return of Yang's usual humour.

It was at this moment that the door opened and Dr Rhodes entered. Yang sat down in a nearby seat and Dr Rhodes sat down on the other side of the consultation desk.

"Hello Miss Rose. How are you feeling today?" The doctor asked.

""Still a little sore and achy but I'm not getting headaches as regularly as I have been."

"That's a good sign right?" Yang questioned. The second that Doctor Rhodes had entered the room, Yang had snapped right back into her concerned state.

"Usually, yes it would be a good sign. However we have received all the results for the tests that we conducted a week ago and I'm afraid that this isn't the news that anyone was hoping for. It appears that the red substance that Miss Rose described was actually a type of Listatheriod. You could describe it as a sort of super-virus. The Listatheriod as made has infiltrated the blood system and is now attacking Miss Rose's aura. This explains why it was unable to protect her during class. Unfortunately, there is no know cure or treatment because the Listatheriod is relatively new, rare and advanced."

"What does this mean? We can't do anything?" The fear in Yang's voice was evident. Ruby was too busy trying to understand exactly what the doctor had said and she was glad that Yang was here to ask all the questions on her behalf. As Dr Rhodes began to answer Yang's question, it was apparent that she was apprehensive to do so.

"As we are unable to prevent the virus from attacking the aura, it means that this disease is in fact fatal. From the few previous cases of Listatheriod infections, there have been no survivors."

 **Authors Note:** Yes, I know. I hate me too. Clearly I have no soul. I'm currently on uni break for the next 2 moths so there shouldn't as big of a gap in between the next few chapters. If you have the time, please leave a comment as I welcome criticism.


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